UnionBank, CANVAS.PH team up to help artists, collectors explore NFT art space

Tree planting efforts also pledged to offset joint initiative's carbon footprint

Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) is leveraging its expertise in blockchain technology in a partnership with the non-profit organization Center for Art, New Ventures and Sustainable Development (CANVAS.PH) to help artists and collectors navigate the emerging non-fungible token (NFT) art space. 

The partnership was made official through a virtual signing event last February 17 between Cathy Casas, UnionBank's Head of Blockchain Center of Excellence (BCOE), Digital Assets Markets Unit and API Marketplace; and Gigo Alampay, Executive Director, CANVAS.PH. They were joined by former Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Popo Lotilla, who introduced CANVAS.PH to UnionBank, and who has set his eyes recently on the transformative potential of blockchain technology especially here in the Philippines.

“Art has always been a powerful tool in creating positive change, and the advent of NFT technology potentially opens up more opportunities for artists to positively impact society through their work,” said Lotilla. “Together with the leading expertise of UnionBank in blockchain, we believe that this partnership will help CANVAS.PH uplift more lives through its advocacy.”

BUx records 33x surge in transaction volume in 2021, expects to continue growth path this year

BUx, the Philippines’ leading all-in-one payment solutions platform operated by the country’s leader in open finance UBX, recorded a 33x surge in transaction volume in 2021, processing billions of pesos in gross transaction value, hitting its profitability targets as planned. 

The unprecedented growth was driven by an expanded portfolio of e-merchant partners across a wide range of industries, including SMEs, enterprises, marketplaces, and marketplace aggregators.  

UnionBank joins PSE Investment Forum 2022, talks crypto as future of banking, finance

Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) Senior Executive Vice President, Chief Technology and Operations Officer and Chief Transformation Officer Henry Aguda joined discussions on digital and crypto assets as the future of financial investments at the recently concluded PSE Investment Forum 2022.

As the country’s first bank to successfully carry out financial transactions through blockchain, UnionBank attests to the use of the technology in banking securely and efficiently. Blockchain can thus, be applied in a wide array of use cases.

“In fact, one of the very good applications we started with early on, was how to address the problem where rural banks don't have access to one another; and to the basic banking requirements in the industry,” Aguda explained.

Fintech, blockchain, open finance expertise to help UnionDigital usher future of banking in PH

With its expertise in fintech, blockchain, and open finance in the country, UnionDigital is well-positioned to offer financial services to customers regardless of how digital finance would evolve. This was the key message of UnionDigital CEO and co-founder Arvie De Vera during his presentation at the BusinessWorld Insights Forum. The topic for the day was on digital banks and the transformation of the financial sector in the country.

“When we started this digital transformation journey, our aspiration was to adopt the mindset and agility of a tech company, but retain the governance and trust of a regulated bank. That aspiration became a reality on December 2020 when the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) released its digital bank regulations. Six months later, UnionDigital was born, and operates as a tech company and also a bank,” De Vera said.

UBX to double workforce in 2022

New hires to drive further growth, inclusive finance vision of UBX

UBX, the leading open finance platform in the Philippines, plans to more than double its workforce this year to strengthen its goal of developing more digital financial solutions and better serve consumers and businesses. 

After gaining traction in 2021, UBX plans to continue innovating to introduce more solutions in various financial segments, including, but not limited to payments, banking services, savings and insurance, identity verification and credit scoring, as well as cryptocurrencies, among many others. 

Not physically and financially healthy enough? You only need one plan to boost both

While the coronavirus pandemic has altered the way we live, some things will never change. For this reason, more people are turning to life insurance companies to better prepare themselves and their loved ones against all things inevitable.

In a 2021 survey commissioned by the AIA Group, AIA Philippines’ Hong Kong-based parent company, majority of Filipinos acknowledged the severe impact COVID-19 has made on their well-being, not only in terms of their physical and mental health, but also on their social lives and financial security.

About 71 percent of the respondents said the pandemic had a negative effect on their personal/family finances—driven mostly by mass layoffs, limited economic activities, and shrinking business confidence—with average income reduction measured at 29 percent. 

UBX revenues balloon 5x in 2021, aims to ride growth momentum this year

UBX, the leading open finance platform in the Philippines, recorded remarkable growth in 2021 with revenues ballooning by 5x, a momentum that the fintech innovator aims to ride on in 2022.

With the demand for digital financial solutions growing at rapid paces due to the pandemic, UBX served over 200,000 business to business customers, partnered with more than 2,000 independent banking agents and 250 financial institutions, and recorded an annual gross transaction value of P20 billion. 

“The year 2021 was a real inflection point for us – it is when we achieved traction. Our goal is to continue to ride on this growth momentum in 2022 through constant innovation and the development of solutions that will further democratize access to financial services,” UBX President and CEO John Januszczak said.